Boy Attempts to Carjack Uniformed, Off Duty Officer

A 14-year-old boy attempted to carjack an off-duty Pittsburgh police officer at gunpoint yesterday, but he was foiled when the officer, who was wearing her uniform, got out of her car and chased him down.

Officer Caytlin Wood was sitting in her own car yesterday afternoon, idling on Pearl Street in Bloomfield, when a group of five teenagers caught her attention, police said.

She called for backup, but while she was on the phone, one of the teenagers, the 14-year-old boy, walked toward her car and said something to her. When she started to roll down her window, the teenager pointed a gun at her head and told her to get out of the car.

When Officer Wood opened her car door, the teenager ran away. She ran after him, catching him about one block away and retrieving the gun he had used.

All five teenagers in the group were arrested. Two were 14, one was 15, one was 16 and one was 17.

All of them were charged with robbery of a motor vehicle and criminal conspiracy.

The 14-year-old boy who pointed the gun at Officer Wood was also charged with illegal possession of a firearm, according to police.

Officer Wood had been preparing to leave for her 4 p.m. to midnight shift when she noticed the teenagers.

Police said she was in her uniform at the time, but her city police insignia was obscured by a sweatshirt she was wearing.